People have been using cartoons a medium to convey important social and political messages for decades now. Still, the power of Alex Nabaum’s images manage to pull the rug out from under our feet, every single time.
Having illustrated for money since his school days, while he was growing up in Littleton, Colorado, a suburb of Denver, he has been working as a full-time illustrator with globally popular newspapers and magazines such as Wall Street Journal, ESPN, Economist, Fast Company, National Geographic, Oprah, Bloomberg Business Week and New York Times, ever since 2004.
Interestingly, despite his obvious talents, Nabaum seems to let the obvious visual appeal and colour tones of his work take a back seat to let the heady message of his work stand out from the din. He uses the negative space to depict the serious dual reality of society and politics around us.
Of course, it is not easy to come up with creative content on such unique topics, which is why his illustrations are formed through a slow evolutionary process from rough pencil strokes to revised sketches to full-fledged illustrations. His brilliant use of polysemy adds and extra layer of depth to his profound illustrations...
Scroll down to see some of his most powerful creations: